Ep. 317: Life in the Vegas Tunnels: Clowns, Crickets & Crank [REMASTERED]

What’s it like living underground? How did he get out? Paul Vautrinot shares his story of living in the Las Vegas tunnels, or as he states it, beneath the neon. He shares what life in the Vegas underground city was like with the tunnel people, how he left, got sober & became a co-founder of Shine a Light Foundation. He shares the organization’s unique approach to ending homelessness & how they are by-passing wait lists. This episode originally aired June 6, 2022 If you like this episode, you’ll also like episode 248: SURVIVING THE TROUBLED TEEN INDUSTRY: SEPARATING IDENTITY FROM EXPERIENCE [REMASTERED] Guest:https://www.shinealightlv.com/https://www.facebook.com/shinealightLVhttps://www.instagram.com/shine_a_lightlv/https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/beneath-the-neon-podcast/id1532967337 Host:  https://www.meredithforreal.com/  https://www.instagram.com/meredithforreal/ [email protected]://www.youtube.com/meredithforreal  https://www.facebook.com/meredithforrealthecuriousintrovert  Sponsors: https://www.jordanharbinger.com/starterpacks/ https://www.historicpensacola.org/about-us/  00:00 — The hidden city beneath Vegas02:00 — A “happy” childhood behind chaos03:20 — Getting invited underground06:00 — First night in the tunnels07:00 — Nicknames and neighborhoods below ground08:00 — The drug dealer’s driver and the underground map09:00 — Biking blind in total darkness10:00 — Hierarchies of the homeless tunnels12:00 — The girlfriend, the cricket, and the cops18:00 — Jail, withdrawal, and a strange stroke of luck20:00 — From drug court to sobriety21:00 — Meeting Matt O’Brien and the flood-drain exposé23:00 — The birth of Shine A Light25:00 — Building a no-waitlist system for help27:00 — Trust, recovery, and the Vegas community29:00 — What would actually end homelessness?30:00 — Creating stability in the smallest windows of hope31:00 — What’s next for Shine A Light32:00 — 104 people out of the tunnels33:00 — How to help and get involved34:00 — A new kind of light under VegasRequest to join my private Facebook Group, MFR Curious Insiders: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/1BAt3bpwJC/Follow me in all the places:https://www.meredithforreal.com/  https://www.instagram.com/the_curiousintrovert/ [email protected]://www.youtube.com/meredithforreal https://www.facebook.com/curiousintrovert